POSTED BY KIM — Do you see why I love this flower?? It is mid-November and this plant is going gangbusters. This particular cultivar is ‘Oranges and Lemons,’ my favorites. It blooms like an annual — this flower is never *not* in bloom. And there’s no need to deadhead — the seedheads provide fantastic interest [...]
Entries Tagged as ‘Butterfly’
October 19, 2009
Bloomerang is still blooming
POSTED BY KIM — Here’s a picture of LILAC BUDS on the Syringa ‘Bloomerang’ that is planted in our garden here at Sugar Creek. Please note the date — Oct. 16 — and the temperature — 44 degrees! I can’t wait to see what this shrub does next year with a full growing season behind [...]
October 16, 2009
Penstemon Rondo: Act 2
POSTED BY KIM — This cool rainy weather has prevented me from digging in my garden — and believe me, I have a lot of digging to do! — but many of the perennials are catching a second wind and looking gorgeous all over again.
This is Penstemon ‘Rondo,’ which is planted in a new little [...]
October 15, 2009
‘Little Annie:’ The most exciting coneflower development in the last 10 years
POSTED BY KIM — Coneflower hybridization has been especially active during the last several years — doubles, oranges, fragrants, reds, yellows, etc. ‘Tiki Torch,’ ‘Tomato Soup,’ ‘Mac ‘n Cheese,’ ‘Hot Papaya’ — the list goes on and on. So if you’re a coneflower lover, it’s been fun!
Now I’m going to tell you about a new [...]
October 7, 2009
Butterflies in the kitchen
POSTED BY KIM — Interesting things are always going on at my little house. I have two crazy kids, two crazy cats, two (new) dwarf hamsters, and butterflies in the kitchen. (Not to mention my husband — don’t get me started!
Every year my kids and I collect Monarch butterfly eggs and caterpillars from [...]
September 21, 2009
A quick look at what’s blooming on my deck
POSTED BY KIM — Even though the season is winding down, I was out on my deck this morning and saw my passion flower vine blooming. Yay! It was a bittersweet moment because it was the first bloom of the season, and here we are in late September. I overwintered this plant last year in [...]
May 16, 2009
It’s Time to Twist and Shout
POSTED BY PEGGY: Hydrangea ‘Twist and Shout’ is the latest in the everblooming Endless Summer Series of Big Leaf Hydrangeas. Endless Summer Hydrangeas bloom on old wood (last year’s growth) and new wood (this year’s growth). This means if you accidently prune your Big Leaf Hydrangea or a cold winter kills last year’s growth, it will [...]
April 14, 2009
Monarch and hummingbird lovers, start your engines!
POSTED BY KIM — Stop me if you’ve heard this one, but a customer was in the nursery this morning and she told me about the most interesting website. It’s called Journey North, and through this site you can follow the migration of various animal species, including monarch butterflies and hummingbirds.
They say: Journey North engages [...]
December 6, 2008
My new favorite Christmas ornaments
POSTED BY KIM — I’m such a nerd. I can’t believe I’m doing a post on *Christmas ornaments,* but once you see the pictures, I think you’ll understand.
You see, my kids and I collect caterpillars and hatch them (can’t think of a better word) in a container in our kitchen all summer long. We specialize in [...]
December 3, 2008
Growing wild through gravel in our parking lot — passion flower is one tough vine
POSTED BY KIM — Earlier this summer we stacked a bunch of trellises in the parking lot just to make some room, and would you believe that a vine actually started growing on one of them? Say hello to Passiflora incarnata, the native passion flower vine.
Obviously if it’s growing wild in our parking lot — [...]
